This invention relates to drive wheel steering vehicles and more specifically to twin-lever drive wheel steering lawn mowers, wherein the steering levers also provide parking brakes.
Drive wheel steering is a concept where the two drive wheels on fixed axles are rotated at different speeds to achieve turning. The drive wheels can also be rotated in different directions for a very sharp turn or even a zero turn radius which is when the mower actually turns about the mid point of the drive wheel axis. The other wheels on the mower are free-wheeling and castered which merely follow the drive wheels.
With drive wheel steering mowers, the mower becomes much more maneuverable than conventional vehicle steering. Hydraulically powered drive wheel mowers typically include a separate variable displacement axial piston hydraulic pump for each of the two fixed axle drive wheels. These variable displacement pumps include a tiltable swash plate which can vary the pump discharge rate from zero flow, referred to as neutral, up to a maximum flow or a reverse direction of flow. This variable flow rate takes the place of a transmission and a clutch. In drive wheel steering, the flow rates to the wheel motors control the turning speed of the wheels.
Drive wheel steering type mowers, have been around for at least 40 years and are typically controlled by a pair of side-by-side levers which move forward and aft from a neutral position to achieve variable speed and steering. These two essentially vertically positioned levers can be positioned close together between the operator""s knees or positioned out to the sides of the operator, as in the present invention, with horizontal gripping portions extending in toward the center of the mower for easy side-by-side gripping. Each lever independently controls the speed of one of the drive wheels which permits a variety of maneuvers including rotating one wheel forward while rotating the other backward, which causes the mower to turn within its own dimensions. These types of mowers are generally referred to as zero turning radius mowers.
Parking brakes for hydraulically powered drive wheel steering mowers in the prior art are typically independent brakes of the nature of a hand brake in an automobile. If no power is being supplied to the pump, there is no braking action, so if the mower is on an incline, it will begin to roll. Prior art hydraulic drive wheel steering machines typically have a separate independent park brake lever which is either set by a pedal or by a locking hand lever. However, if the operator forgets to set the parking brake on an unpowered mower, there is a danger that the mower may roll if it is on a slight incline. If the engine is running in the neutral position, the motors are pressurized equally so the machine will not roll.
The present invention alleviates the potential rolling problem of the mower when the engine is not running with the provision of a parking brake on each drive wheel which is activated by moving the steering levers outward so that the operator can dismount the machine. The movement of each steering lever outward sets the brake on each drive wheel, thereby preventing a potential accident.
The steering levers for both wheels are each connected through a series of linkages to the pump control for altering the flow rate from zero flow, either forward or backward, to a maximum flow rate or some speed in-between. Also connected to each steering lever is a second linkage which engages or releases a brake on each wheel. These two different functions which the steering levers perform are effected by two distinctive separate movements. To cause the mower to move forward or backward, the steering levers are moved longitudinally forward in a vertical plane from the neutral position or longitudinally backward in the same plane for moving in reverse.
To engage the brake, the steering lever is moved laterally outward 45 degrees in a plane normal to the previously mentioned longitudinal plane. This lateral movement is only possible when the steering lever is in the neutral position. The hand engaging portions of the steering levers in the running position are horizontally positioned in front of the operator, thus blocking his egress from the mower. By rotating the steering levers laterally outward from the neutral position, the brakes on both wheels are engaged and the mower is safe to leave unattended.
When engaging the brakes, the steering levers are rotated outward through 45 degrees of travel, thus causing the brake lever extension to rotate 13 degrees. By reason of the mechanical advantage of the moment arms and overall geometry of the linkage, a 10 to 1 mechanical advantage can be obtained when setting the brakes through manual rotation of the steering levers. When the steering levers are moved longitudinally for steering, there is no movement of the brake linkage.
The principal advantage of the present invention is to provide a twin-lever drive wheel steering mower wherein the movement of the steering levers provides speed control as well as setting the park brake when the levers are locked in neutral.
Another object of the present invention is to provide steering lever geometry which necessitates setting the brakes prior to egress from the mower.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a riding mower with a high degree of safety when the operator dismounts the mower.